The present invention constitutes a new and distinct variety of miniature rose plant which originated from a controlled crossing between xe2x80x98POULemonxe2x80x99 and an unnamed seedling. The two parents were crossed and the resulting seeds were planted in a controlled environment. The new variety is named xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99.
The new rose may be distinguished from its seed parent, xe2x80x98POULemonxe2x80x99, by the following combination of characteristics:
1. xe2x80x98POULemonxe2x80x99 has whitish-yellow flowers, while xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 has soft yellow flowers.
2. xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 has greater lastingness than xe2x80x98POULemonxe2x80x99.
3. xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 has thicker and glossier foliage, and is easier to propagate than xe2x80x98POULemonxe2x80x99.
The new variety may be distinguished from its pollen parent, an unnamed seedling, created by the same inventors, by the following combination of characteristics:
1. The parents of the unnamed seedling are xe2x80x98Mini-Poulxe2x80x99, a red-yellow bi-color rose, and a bright yellow Patio rose.
2. The unnamed seedling has yellow flowers with red intonations, while xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 has soft yellow flowers.
The objective of the hybridization of this rose variety for commercial greenhouse culture was to create a new and distinct variety with unique qualities, such as:
1. Uniform and abundant soft yellow flowers;
2. Vigorous and compact growth;
3. Year-round flowering under glasshouse conditions;
4. Suitability for production from softwood cuttings in pots;
5. Durable flowers and foliage which make a variety suitable for distribution in the floral industry.
This combination of qualities was not present in previously available commercial cultivars of this type and distinguish xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 from all other varieties of which we are aware.
As part of their rose development program, L. Pernille Olesen and Mogens N. Olesen germinated the seeds from the aforementioned hybridization and conducted evaluations on the resulting seedlings in a controlled environment in Fredensborg, Denmark.
xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 was selected by the inventors as a single plant from the progeny of the hybridization in April, 1994.
Asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 by cuttings and traditional budding was first done by L. Pernille and Mogens N. Olesen in their nursery in Fredensborg, Denmark in June, 1994. This initial and other subsequent propagations conducted in controlled environments have demonstrated that the characteristics of xe2x80x98POULmoonxe2x80x99 are true to type and are transmitted from one generation to the next.